Unfortunately, the newspapers are full of examples these days of issues and scandals surrounding the management of capital projects. Here is an article from the Miami Herald about a city’s head of capital projects that was allegedly fired for speaking up about problems related to their construction project management processes.
There are two sides to every story and I don’t know much about the claim other than what I read in the article. But this much I do know: the proper management of capital projects requires very specific controls, ones that are different from the typical financial controls that are in place within a business, institution or government.
What is questioned in the article is whether the capital improvements department had the proper controls in place to address the alleged mismanagement of project funds. It is interesting that as I meet and speak to many facility owners around the country, the heads of the construction departments struggle with the right balance of structure and tight control versus flexibility.
It would seem that “tight control” is a no-brainer when you see these articles in the paper. But in the fast-paced world of project management, controls that are too tight or that are not built around the specific needs of the construction process can cause other problems like scope changes, cost overruns, and schedule delays – the very things the controls are trying to prevent.
My personal opinion is that a team should gradually make the shift from flexible, fluid processes to more structured ones. The processes that should be controlled first are the ones that pose the most risk if they are not followed. Introduce structure slowly and over time. This way you won’t disrupt the work of the department and the team, and you will also be able to make adjustments in a ‘real world’ environment. Keep “tweaking” the system until you find the right balance of structure and flexibility.
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